Park County School District 1 Superintendent Jay Curtis will be sticking around through at least June, 2027.

Curtis, who has been with the district since 2017, had his contract renewed in January and his salary amount increased by just over 4% to $185,500 from $177,662 on May 13.

“My intent is to be in Powell until I retire, which is a mere nine to 10 years from now. There's just no place I'd rather be, no team I'd rather be working with, no board I'd rather be working for, no community I'd rather be living in,” Curtis said. “So I'm just exceptionally honored and proud to be the superintendent here in Powell.”

Park County School District 1 staff received an increase to their compensation packages this year and the board wanted Curtis’ raise to be similar, Board Chair Kim Dillivan said. The board compared other superintendent compensation around the state before deciding on a number. 

“I think I speak for the board when I say the board of trustees thinks that Mr. Curtis does a wonderful job. I cannot think of anybody who would do a better job of superintendent than Mr. Curtis,” Dillivan said. "He's a leader, he works hard, he's smart, he makes great decisions. He's a problem solver and he's a critical thinker.”

In the board’s opinion it is important to pay district staff competitive salaries, Dillivan said. 

Last year, the board opted to give Curtis a one time payment of $3,500 to his Health Reimbursement account.

It seemed to be the right move, Dillivan said, “the problem with that now, we knew it at the time, but, but it was just a one time payment … it wasn't going to make a salary more.”

Last year, the board did not know what the financial future of the district looked like but this year they were able to provide raises to district staff, Curtis said, “So the board opted to take care of me in that process as well, and I'm really appreciative for their hard work on that.”